Starting your own eCommerce Business might sound like a huge undertaking, but a little effort will get you a long way. Online retail is growing year after year, and now is the best time to start your first eCommerce website. This eMarketer projection shows that retail eCommerce sales will increase to $4.058 trillion in 2020, making up 14.6% of total retail spending
There is no doubt that technology has aided the trend of purchasing from home or on a mobile device. However, even with these soaring numbers and technological aids, starting an eCommerce site doesn’t guarantee success.
This article will look at some steps necessary to start your own eCommerce website, all you need is dedication, perseverance, and the willingness to learn.
Preparation is key
Do your research and get organised. Learn about the market, competitors and your product. You’ll need to develop working relationships with important contacts such as freight providers, web developers, marketers, photographers, graphic artists and product suppliers. Making sure you find the right contacts will benefit your business in the long run.
This won’t come together in the first month, you will make mistakes and see change, good preparation is the best way to prevent this. Be patient as all good things take time. Some businesses spend years in planning and research before an online store is launched.
Choosing a Product
The most difficult step of the process is choosing the right product. This decision will have a huge impact on whether your eCommerce website is successful. Here are a few things to consider when choosing an industry and product.
How much does the product cost? Too low, and it will be challenging to reach a positive return on investment. If it’s too high, there’s a good chance customers would rather go in store and speak to a sales person, having the tangible product in front of them. Many have found the $100 to $200 price range to be the perfect for online sales, most likely it will have a solid profit margin, and isn’t too much money. Most people are comfortable placing an online order in this range.
Can you buy this product locally? A good way to avoid choosing the wrong product is avoiding products that can be locally sourced. It’s easier to drive sales online when the product can’t be bought in local stores. If they can’t get it locally then they must go online to purchase. This is often the case with newer products that haven’t made the jump to stores.
How big or heavy is the product? Obviously, the bigger and heavier a product the more it will cost to ship. This can have a negative effect on sales, especially if the product is already expensive. Free shipping is becoming the norm for large online retailers, consumers don’t want to see large shipping costs. For this reason, it can be difficult to sell a product with a large shipping fee. Consumers are intelligent, raising the price of a product to then offer ‘free shipping’ may lose you the trust of potential buyers and decrease sales. Courier and freight specialists like PACK & SEND can bring you up to speed on the best and most affordable way to send your product.
Is it your passion? Often overlooked but usually a convincing indicator of success. You will be frustrated and annoyed throughout the process of starting your eCommerce site. If you don’t love the product you are selling, you may question why you are doing it. Passion for a product or overall industry can assist you through harder times, acting as a great motivational tool. So, what do you enjoy? What is your favourite pastime? Chances are choosing a product that you are familiar with or have used before will also benefit your eCommerce site. For example, if you love bicycles, consider selling parts for bikes.
Learn from the best
Look at your competitors and colleagues. Just because one business is your competitor, doesn’t mean you can’t learn from them. Large, well-known online stores that have established themselves spend huge amounts of time and money in research and testing, this means they generally know what works. So, choose an online store that will motivate you and use it to get insights, you’ll soon discover what works and what doesn’t.